A Thunderbolt of Justice

JIM OBERGEFELL led a class action in the US Supreme Court that established marriage equality nationwide for Americans. Love Wins, co-written with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist DEBBIE CENZIPER, is the story of the love that inspired the fight for justice. ANGUS DALTON reports.

On 26 June 2015, the US Supreme Court deemed bans on same-sex marriage as unconstitutional in the Obergefell v Hodges court case. After decades of debate, activism and frustration, marriage equality was finally established across America in a ruling described by President Obama as ‘a thunderbolt of justice’. But this decision, which sparked worldwide celebration, began in tragic circumstances.

Jim Obergefell fell in love with John Arthur in Cincinnati, Ohio, in the early weeks of 1993, the same year that the city voted to introduce a blanket ban on all pro-LGBTQI laws from being implemented. That measure wasn’t lifted until 2004. Cincinnati has been described as ‘ground zero’ for extremist groups that regularly torched and bombed abortion clinics during the 1980s and ’90s. Jim and John didn’t hide their sexuality, but they lived quietly, dodging much of the discrimination and hate hurled at the more outspoken LGBTQI people in the city. But when John was struck down with motor neurone disease in 2011, just after his 45th birthday, the pair rushed to marry as the neurological disease destroyed the nerve cells in his brain and spinal cord. They had to fly to the nearby state of Maryland, where marriage equality was recognised. The ceremony was performed inside the tiny cabin of a medical jet on the runway; John was too sick to even step out onto the tarmac.

Upon their return to Ohio, the ecstatic newlyweds were greeted with a throng of friends and family, who showered them with rice. But heartbreak followed soon after; they were told that their marriage wouldn’t be recognised in Ohio, despite having been legally wed in another state. John’s marital status would be listed as ‘single’ on his death certificate.

The fight to have their marriage honoured by their home state was the first battle fronted by Jim, who inadvertently catalysed a campaign for justice that would eventually take him to Washington, where he represented over 30 plaintiffs in favour of marriage equality before the Supreme Court.

‘I still feel guilty about being the named plaintiff because this case wasn’t just about John and me. It was also about more than 30 other plaintiffs whose stories are just as important. I’m honoured that I became the name and face of such an important fight, and it’s been a privilege to speak on their behalf,’ Jim explained. ‘I find that when I read a news article or listen to the news and Obergefell v Hodges is mentioned, I have to remind myself that Obergefell refers to me! I know that this case will be referenced in history books, and I wonder if everything will suddenly become real when I see it in a textbook for the first time. Even now, almost a year later, it’s still surreal.’

Jim teamed up with family friend and Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Debbie Cenziper to write Love Wins, the story behind the historic court case. They describe the book as ‘a love story wrapped up in a legal thriller’.

‘I was a busy investigative reporter at The Washington Post, writing about fraud and government corruption,’ says Debbie, who met Jim and John at her own wedding 25 years ago. ‘But this case moved me in a way no other story had. The problems faced by the 30-plus plaintiffs – not being able to get accurate death certificates for their spouses or birth certificates for their children – seemed outrageous and nonsensical. I knew I had to stop everything and write this story.’

Crucial to Jim’s victory was Al Gerhardstein, a civil rights lawyer who had been tirelessly battling Cincinnati’s hidebound laws for decades, often going without pay for years while striving for justice.

‘Al Gerhardstein believes in right and wrong,’ says Debbie. ‘There is no middle ground. He heads from one case to another without stopping for breath – almost as if there is not enough time to correct all the problems in the world. Money and fame don’t motivate him. On the day of the Supreme Court decision, his staff celebrated with a wedding cake.’

Australia is the last developed English-speaking country to fail to recognise marriage equality. A plebiscite on the issue seems imminent.

‘Opponents of marriage equality typically do not have family members or friends who are open members of the LGBTQ community,’ says Jim. ‘Without a personal connection, or knowing someone who’s part of the LGBTQ community, people form opinions in the absence of fact and experience. People fear the unknown, and unfortunately, that fear is used against the LGBTQ community.’

Religion is at the root of anti-equality arguments, but as Jim convinced the US Supreme Court, religion is no longer required for any marriage to be recognised at a state level.

‘The term “marriage” is not owned by any religion, and civil marriage, along with the rights, protections and benefits it brings, is rightly available to all couples.

‘The states argued at the Supreme Court that proponents of marriage equality were attempting to change the definition of marriage as it has existed for millennia, but that ignores the fact that marriage has already changed. A wife is no longer the husband’s property, and members of different races may marry. We were simply asking to participate in the institution of marriage, something straight couples take for granted.’

John died three months after he married Jim, but in those last weeks together, every time they used the word ‘husband’ it gave them a thrill. Jim took on a nation for John – and won. And he hasn’t stopped there. Jim is now an ordained minister and married his first gay couple in Cincinnati – a reinvented city – last July.

‘We’re far from done in our fight .The backlash against the marriage equality ruling has been more vicious than most of us imagined, and it’s a sad reminder that we seem doomed to repeat the mistakes of our past. Our fight won’t be finished until every kid can grow up safe, loved and able to live an authentic life without fear and without apology.’